Year-end reflections and celebrating the season

The darkest days of the year are here.  As the days get shorter, our psyches long to reflect on and let go of the past year--from decades of our own experience and millennia of human experience.  In preparation for tomorrow's Winter Solstice, I invite you to join me for a little "hibernation"--savoring the darkness by lighting candles, curling up with your favorite hot beverage, and reflecting on 2013 with help from these prompts:

• Highlights and celebrations in 2013
• What I'll always remember about 2013
• My greatest insights or lessons learned in 2013
• What I am releasing and leaving behind in 2013
• What I am carrying in to 2014 from 2013

December is also a time of year when most of us are rushing around to buy gifts, get packages in the mail, attend holiday parties, and prepare to travel to or host loved ones. This can feel counter to our natural rhythms. I find that when I make a little space for quiet and reflection, I enjoy the holidays more as a result. 

Some ways I'm honoring this holiday season:

• Simplifying family gift giving with a name draw among my three sisters and brothers-in-law
  
• Reflecting on 2013 with my family, friends, and clients 
• Making donations in honor of loved ones instead of going out to buy gifts
  

However you're celebrating this time of year, I hope that it fills your cup to overflowing and prepares you to give your gifts in 2014 from a place of fullness rather than depletion.

Wishing you a Blessed Solstice, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!
Sara